SATI

exerpt from Mindfulness in Plain English by
Venerable Henepola Gunaratana

Mindfulness is the English translation of the Pali word 'Sati.' Sati is an
activity. What exactly is that? Well, this is one of those questions without
a precise answer, at least not in words. Words are devised by the symbolic
levels of the mind and they describe those realities with which symbolic
thinking deals. Mindfulness (Sati) is pre-symbolic. It is not shackled to
logic. Nevertheless, Mindfulness can be experienced - rather easily - and it
can be described, as long as you keep in mind that the words are only fingers
pointing at the moon. They are not the thing itself. The actual experience
lies beyond the words and above the symbols. Mindfulness could be described
in completely different terms than will be used here and each description
could still be correct.

Mindfulness (Sati) is a subtle process that you are using at this very moment.
The fact that this process lies above and beyond words does not make it
unreal - quite the reverse. Mindfulness is the reality which gives rise to
words - the words that follow are simply pale shadows of reality. So, it is
important to understand that everything that follows here is an analogy. It is
not going to make perfect sense. Please don't sit around scratching your head
and trying to figure it all out. In fact, the meditational technique called
Vipassana (insight) that was introduced by the Buddha about twenty-five
centuries ago is a set of mental activities specifically aimed at experiencing
a state of uninterrupted Mindfulness or Sati.

When you first become aware of something there is a fleeting instant of pure
awareness just before you conceptualize he thing, before you identify it. That
is a stage of Mindfulness (Sati). Ordinarily, this stage is very short. It is
that flashing split second just before you focus your eyes on the thing, just
before you focus your mind on the thing, just before you objectify it, clamp
down on it mentally and segregate it from the rest of existence. It takes
place just before ,you start thinking about it - before that little 'yak, yak'
machine inside your skull says, "Oh, it's a dog." That flowing, soft-focused
moment of pure awareness is Mindfulness (Sati). In that brief flashing mind-
moment you experience a thing as an un-thing. You experience a softly flowing
moment of pure experience that is interlocked with the rest of reality, not
separate from it. Mindfulness is very much like what you see with your
peripheral vision as opposed to the hard focus of normal or central vision.
Yet this moment of soft, unfocused, awareness contains a very deep sort of
knowing that is lost as soon as you focus your mind and objectify the object
into a thing. In the process of ordinary perception, the Mindfulness (Sati)
step is so fleeting as to be unobservable. We have developed the habit of
squandering our attention on all the remaining steps, focusing on the
perception, cognizing the perception, labeling it, and most od all, getting
involved in a long string of symbolic thought about it. That original moment
of Mindfulness just gets lost in the shuffle. It is the purpose of the above
mentioned Vipassana (or insight) meditation to train us to prolong that moment
of awareness.

When this Mindfulness (Sati) is prolonged by using proper techniques, you find
that this experience is profound and it changes your whole view of the
universe. This state of perception has to be learned, however, and it takes
regular practice. Once you learn the technique, you will find that Mindfulness
has a number of interesting characteristics.

THE CHARACTERISTICS OF MINDFULNESS (SATI)

Mindfulness (Sati) is mirror-thought. It reflects only what is presently
happening and in exactly the way it is happening. There are no biases.

Mindfulness (Sati) is non-judgmental observation. It is that ability of the
mind to observe without criticism. With this ability, one sees things without
condemnation or judgment. One is surprised by nothing. One simply takes a
balanced interest in things exactly as they are in their natural states. One
does not decide and does not judge. One just observes.

It is psychologically impossible for us to objectively observe what is going on
within us if we do not at the same time accept the occurrence of our various
states of mind. This is especially true with unpleasant states of mind. In
order to observe our own fear, we must accept the fact that we are afraid. We
can't examine our own depression without accepting i fully. The same is true
for irritation and agitation, frustration and all those other uncomfortable
emotional states. You can't examine something fully if you are busy rejecting
the existence of it. Whatever experience we may be having, Mindfulness just
accepts it. It is simply another of life's occurrences, just another thing to
be aware of. No pride, no shame, nothing personal at stake - what is there, is
there.

Mindfulness (Sati) is an impartial watchfulness. It does not take sides. It
does not get hung up in what is perceived. It just perceives. Mindfulness does
not get infatuated with the good stuff. It does not try to sidestep the bad
stuff. There is no clinging to the pleasant, no fleeing from the unpleasant.
Mindfulness sees all experiences as equal, all thoughts as equal, all feelings
as equal. Nothing is suppressed. Nothing is repressed. Mindfulness does not
play favorites.

Mindfulness (Sati) is nonconceptual awareness. Another English term for Sati
is 'bare attention.' It is not thinking. It does not get involved with thought
or concepts. It does not get hung up on ideas or opinions or memories. It just
looks. Mindfulness registers experiences, but it does not compare them. It just
observes everything as if they were occurring for the first time. It is not
analysis which is based on reflection and memory. It is, rather, the direct and
immediate experience of whatever is happening, without the medium of thought.
It comes BEFORE thought in the perceptual process.

Mindfulness (Sati) is present-time awareness. It takes place in the here and
now. It is the observance of what is happening right now, in the present
moment. It stays forever in the present, surging perpetually on the crest of
the ongoing wave of passing time. If you are remembering your second-grade
teacher, that is memory. When you then become aware that you are remembering
your second-grade teacher, that is Mindfulness. If you then conceptualize the
process and say to yourself, "Oh, I am remembering", that is thinking.

Mindfulness (Sati) is non-egoistic alertness. It takes place without reference
to self. With Mindfulness one sees all phenomena without references to concepts
like "me", "my" or "mine". For example, suppose there is a pain in your left
leg. Ordinary consciousness would say, "I have a pain." Using Mindfulness, one
would simply note the sensation as a sensation. One would not tack on that
extra concept "I". Mindfulness stops one from adding anything to perception,
or subtracting anything from it. One does not enhance anything. One does not
emphasize anything. One just observes what is there - without distortion.

Mindfulness (Sati) is goal-less awareness. In Mindfulness, one does not strain
for results. One does not try to accomplish anything. When one is mindful, one
experiences reality in the present moment in whatever form it takes. There is
nothing to be achieved. There is only observation.

Mindfulness (Sati) is awareness of change. It is observing the passing flow of
experience. It is watching things as they are changing. It is seeing the birth,
growth, and maturity of all phenomena. It is watching phenomena decay and die.
Mindfulness is watching things moment by moment, continuously. It is observing
all phenomena - physical, mental or emotional - whatever is presently taking
place in the mind. One just sits back and watches the show. Mindfulness is the
observance of the basic nature of each passing phenomena. It is watching the
thing arising and passing away. It is seeing how the thing makes us feel and
how we react to it. It is observing how it affects others. In Mindfulness,
one is an unbiased observer whose sole job is to keep track of the constantly
passing show of the universe within. Please note that last point. In
Mindfulness, one watches the universe within. The meditator who is developing
Mindfulness (Sati) is not concerned with the external universe. It is there,
but in meditation, one's field of study is one's own experience, one's
thoughts, one's feelings, and one's perceptions. In meditation, one is one's
own laboratory. The universe within has an enormous fund of information
containing the reflection of the external world and much more. An examination
of this material leads to total freedom.

Mindfulness (Sati) is participatory observation. The meditator is both
participant and observer at one and the same time. If one watches one's
emotions or physical sensations, one is feeling them at that very same moment.
Mindfulness is not an intellectual awareness. It is just awareness. The Mirror-
thought metaphor breaks down here. Mindfulness is objective, but it is not cold
or unfeeling. It is the wakeful experience of life, an alert participation in
the ongoing process of living.

Mindfulness is an extremely difficult concept to define in words - not because
it is complex, but because it is too simple and open. The same problem crops
up in every area of human experience. The most basic concept is always the
most difficult to pin down. Look at a dictionary and you will see a clear
example. Long words generally have concise definitions, but for short basic
words like "the", "is" or "but", definitions can be a page long. And in physics,
the most difficult functions to describe are the most basic - those that deal
with the most fundamental realities of quantum mechanics. Mindfulness is a pre-
symbolic function. You can play with word symbols all day long and you will
never pin it down completely. We can never fully express what it is. However,
we can say what it does.

THREE FUNDAMENTAL ACTIVITIES

There are three fundamental activities of Mindfulness (Sati). We can use these
activities as functional definitions of the term: (1) Mindfulness reminds us
what we are supposed to be doing; (2) it sees things as they really are; and
(3) it sees the deep nature of all phenomena. Let's examine these definitions
in greater detail.

Mindfulness (Sati) reminds you what you are supposed to be doing. In
meditation, you put your attention on one item. When your mind wanders from
this focus, it is Mindfulness that reminds you that your mind is wandering and
what you are supposed to be doing. It is Mindfulness that brings your mind
back to the object of meditation. All of this occurs instantaneously and
without internal dialogue. Meditation is not thinking. Repeated practice in
meditation establishes this function as a mental habit which then carries over
into the rest of your life. You should be paying bare attention to occurrences
all the time, day in, day out, whether formally sitting in meditation or not.
This is a very lofty ideal towards which those who meditate may be working for
a period of years or even decades. Our habit of getting stuck in thought is
years old, and that habit will hang on in the most tenacious manner. The only
way out is to be equally persistent in the cultivation of constant Mindfulness
(Sati). When Mindfulness is present, you will notice when you become stuck in
your thought patterns. It is that very noticing which allows you to back out
of the thought process and free yourself from it. Mindfulness then returns
your attention to its proper focus. If you are meditating at that moment, then
your focus will be the formal object of meditation. If you are not in formal
meditation, it will be just a pure application of bare attention itself, just
a pure noticing of whatever comes up without getting involved - "Ah, this
comes up... and now this, and now this... and now this."

Mindfulness (Sati) is at one and the same time both bare attention itself and
the function of reminding us to pay bare attention if we have ceased to do so.
Bare attention is noticing. It re-establishes itself simply by noticing that
it has not been present. As soon as you are noticing that you have not been
noticing, then by definition you are noticing and then again you are back to
paying bare attention. Well, that all sounds very involved, but there is
nothing complex about it. It is just the words. It is just a thing you will
learn to do by feel, the way you play baseball. Mindfulness creates its own
distinct feeling in consciousness. It has a flavor - a light, clear, energetic
flavor. Conscious thought is heavy by comparison, ponderous and picky. But
here again, these are just words. Your own practice will show you the
difference. Then you will probably come up with your own words and the words
used here will become superfluous. Remember, practice is the thing.

Mindfulness (Sati) sees things as they really are. It adds nothing to
perception and it subtracts nothing. It distorts nothing. It is bare attention
and just looks at whatever comes up. Conscious thought loves to paste things
over our experience, to load us down with concepts and ideas, to immerse us in
a churning vortex of plans and worries, fears and fantasies. When mindful, you
don't play that game. You just notice exactly what arises in the mind, then you
notice the next thing. "Ah, this... and this... and now this." It is really very
simple.

Mindfulness (Sati) sees the true nature of all phenomena. Mindfulness and
only Mindfulness can perceive the three prime characteristics that Buddhism
teaches are the deepest truth of existence. In Pali these three are called
Annica (impermanence), Dukkha (unsatisfactoriness), and Anatta (selflessness
- the absence of a permanent, unchanging, entity that we call soul or self).
These truths, by the way, are not presented in Buddhist teaching as dogmas
subject to blind faith. The Buddhists feel that these truths are universal and
self-evident to anyone who cares to investigate in a proper way. Mindfulness
is that method of investigation. Mindfulness alone has the power to reveal the
deepest level of reality available to human observation. At this level of
inspection, one sees the following: (a) All conditioned things are inherently
transitory; (b) every worldly thing is, in the end, unsatisfying; and (c)
there are really no entities that are unchanging or permanent, only processes.

Mindfulness works like an electron microscope. That is, it operates on so fine
a level that one can actually see directly those realities which are at best
theoretical constructs to the conscious thought process. Mindfulness actually
sees the impermanent character of every perception. It sees the transitory and
passing nature of everything that is perceived. It also sees the inherently
unsatisfactory nature of all conditioned things. It sees that there is no sense
grabbing onto any of these passing shows. Peace and happiness just cannot
be found that way. And finally, Mindfulness sees the inherent selflessness of
all phenomena. It sees the way we have arbitrarily selected a certain bundle
of perceptions, chopped them off from the rest of the surging flow of
experience and then conceptualized them as separate, enduring, entities.
Mindfulness actually sees these things. It does not think about them, it sees
them directly.

When it is fully developed, Mindfulness sees these three attributes of
existence directly, instantaneously, and without the intervening medium of
conscious thought. In fact, even the attributes which we just covered are
inherently arbitrary. They don't really exist as separate items. They are
purely the result of our struggle to take this fundamentally simple process
called Mindfulness and express it in the cumbersome and inherently unsuitable
thought symbols of the conscious level. Mindfulness is a PROCESS, but it does
not take place in steps. It is a wholistic process that occurs as a unit: you
notice your own lack of Mindfulness; and that noticing itself is a result of
Mindfulness; and Mindfulness is bare attention; and bare attention is noticing
things exactly as they are without distortion; and the way they are is Anicca,
Dukkha, and Anatta (impermananent, unsatisfactory, and self-less). It all
takes place in a flash-bang. This does not mean, however, that you will
instantly attain liberation (freedom from all human weaknesses) as a result of
your first moment of Mindfulness. Learning to integrate this material into
your conscious life is another whole process. And learning to prolong this
state of Mindfulness is still another. They are joyous processes, however, and
they are well worth the effort.

MINDFULNESS (SATI) AND INSIGHT (VIPASSANA) MEDITATION

Mindfulness is the center of Vipassana meditation and the key to the whole
process. It is both the goal of this meditation and the means to that end.
You reach Mindfulness by being ever more mindful. One other Pali word that
is translated into English as Mindfulness is Appamada, which means non-
negligence or an absence of madness. One who attends constantly to what is
really going on in one;s mind achieves the state of ultimate sanity.

The Pali term 'Sati' also bears the connotation of remembering. It is not
memory in the sense of ideas and pictures from the past, but rather clear,
direct, wordless knowing of what is and what is not, of what is correct and
what is incorrect, of what we are doing and how we should go about it.
Mindfulness (Sati) reminds the meditator to apply his attention to the proper
object at the proper time and to exert precisely the amount of energy needed
to do that job. When this energy is properly applied, the meditator stays
constantly in a state of calmness and alertness. As long as this condition is
maintained, those mind-states called 'hindrances' or 'psychic irritants'
cannot arise - there is no greed, no hatred, no lust or laziness. But we are
all human and we all goof. Most of us are very human and we goof repeatedly.
Despite honest effort, the meditator lets his Mindfulness slip now and then
and he finds himself stuck in some nasty, but normal, human failure. It is
Mindfulness that notices that change. And it is Mindfulness that reminds him
to apply the energy required to pull himself out of the soup. These slips
happen over and over, but their frequency decreases with practice. Once
Mindfulness has pushed these mental defilements aside, more wholesome states
of mind can take their place. Hatred makes way for loving kindness, lust is
replaced by detachment. It is Mindfulness which notices this change, too, and
which reminds the Vipassana meditator to maintain that extra little mental
sharpness needed to keep these more desirable states of mind. Mindfulness
makes possible the growth of wisdom and compassion. Without Mindfulness they
cannot develop to full maturity.

Deeply buried in the mind, there lies a mental mechanism which accepts what
the mind perceives as beautiful and pleasant experiences and rejects those
experiences which are perceived as ugly and painful. This mechanism gives
rise to those states of mind which we are training ourselves to avoid - things
like greed, lust, hatred, aversion, and jealousy. We choose to avoid these
hindrances, not because they are evil in the normal sense of the word, but
because they are compulsive; because they take the mind over and capture
the attention completely; because they keep going round and round in tight
little circles of thought; and because they seal us off from living reality.

These hamperings cannot arise when Mindfulness is present. Mindfulness is
attention to present time reality, and therefore, directly antithetical to the
dazed state of mind which characterizes the impediments. As meditators, it is
only when we let our Mindfulness slip that the deep mechanisms of our minds
take over - grasping, clinging and rejecting. Then resistance emerges and
obscures our awareness. We do not notice that the change is taking place - we
are too busy with a thought of revenge, or greed, whatever it may be. While an
untrained person will continue inn this state indefinitely, a trained
meditator will soon realize what is happening. It is Mindfulness that notices
the change. It is Mindfulness that remembers the training received ad that
focuses our attention so that the confusion fades away. And it is Mindfulness
that then attempts to maintain itself indefinitely so that the resistance
cannot arise again. Thus, Mindfulness is the specific antidote for hindrances.
It is both the cure and the preventive measure.

Fully developed Mindfulness (Sati) is a state of total non-attachment and utter
absence of clinging to anything in the world. If we can maintain this state, no
other means or device is needed to keep ourselves free of obstructions, to
achieve liberation from our human weaknesses. Mindfulness is non-superficial
awareness. It sees things deeply, down below the level of concepts and
opinions. This sort of deep observation leads to total certainty, a complete
absence of confusion. It manifests itself primarily as a constant and
unwavering attention which never flags an which never turns away.

This pure and unstained investigative awareness not only holds the fetters at
bay, it lays bare their very mechanism and destroys them. Mindfulness
neutralizes defilements in the mind. The result is a mind which remains
unstained and invulnerable, completely unaffected by the ups and downs of
life.